450 new 'officers' on streets

More than 450 community support officers will patrol the streets later this year after the Metropolitan Police won a £69 million boost from the Budget.

The officers, with their own uniform and badge, will carry out patrolling and guard duties in central London and other high priority areas in the capital.

Their deployment was revealed with the publication of details of how the Home Office will spend an additional ? 340 million from last month's Budget, a Criminal Justice Reserve fund and the existing departmental budget.

The Met hopes to recruit the first CSOs next month and put them on the streets in the summer. They will be paid £18,000 a year, compared with £27,000 for a constable, and will receive three weeks' training.

Under the plans, which depend on the Police Reform Bill becoming law before the summer recess, CSOs will have radios but not handcuffs, batons or CS sprays and will not wear protective clothing.

The Police Reform Bill gives them the power to issue fixed penalty notices, deal with the name and address of someone involved in anti- social behaviour and confiscate alcohol and tobacco.

Home Secretary David Blunkett allocated £171 million to an emergency building programme to provide more prison places as the jail population hit a record 70,681 yesterday. The figure includes a record 4,382 women.